A retired American who lived in Penang, Malaysia, and now has returned to the US shares his thoughts, views and opinions on a variety of subjects ranging from the ridiculous to the controversial. The contents are only limited by his imagination.

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Wednesday, October 3, 2012

Lowered Expectations

Right now it is almost 9PM on Wednesday night here in Malaysia and almost 9AM Wednesday morning in the US. There are 12 hours to go before the first debate between President Obama and the Republican challenger Mitt Romney. Obama has maintained a steady, but small lead in most all of the national polls since the Democratic National Convention. He leads by even larger numbers in the polls of the swing states that will ultimately decide the election. Obama is also highly favored to do better in the debates.

Leading up to the debates both parties have downplayed expectations for their respective candidates. In order for Romney to gain some momentum he has to score a big upset over Obama. Right now even his fellow Republicans doubt that will happen. Romney has failed to give any specifics on his plan for America. He has not offered anything of substance to convince the American people they should vote for him. On the contrary, he has insulted vast groups of people he needs to be elected.

The Democrats are also downplaying their expectations for the debate. Basically all Obama needs to do is look presidential and not make any stupid mistakes. He has said he will not throw any "zingers"at Romney, but will use the debates to talk directly to the American people.

By this time tomorrow the first debate will be history and both political parties will take their spin on them, with the perceived loser recalling the fact the expectations were not high. The debates will be fairly well scripted, which would prevent either candidate from scoring a major coup. I only hope that we will see some specifics from Romney, instead of promises to give details at a later date and that Obama doesn't get too long winded. I also hope they will stick to the facts, and Mr. Romney, I mean actual facts , not falsifications. It will be interesting to see what excuses the GOP comes up with for Romney's performance. I can't wait!